Long-Term Coral Community Stability in a Disturbed Marginal Reef in Kuwait

Shaker Hamza Alhazeem

doi:10.11648/j.wros.20170606.12

Abstract

Coral reefs in Kuwait occur at high latitude (29 N) and in in extreme environmental conditions (SST range: 13°C to 32°C, annually), and have been subject to chronic anthropogenic pressure in recent decades (recurrent bleaching, oil spills, chronic recreational anchoring and diving impacts). We surveyed coral communities at six sites around Kubbar Island in 2015 and compared these to quantitative survey results collected at the same sites 31 years earlier (1984) as well as to results from several sites resurveyed a decade ago (2003) in order to characterize changes in coral community structure in this marginal reef environment. Mean coral cover was 25% in 2015 compared with 34% in 1984, but declines in coral cover were significant at only one site. The decline in coral cover at this single site was mainly due to a >80% loss of formerly dominant <sup>Acropora</sup>, and a concomitant shift towards a lower cover community dominated by massive corals. A total of 13 coral genera were observed across sites, comparable to the 12 observed in 1984 and the 13 observed in 2003. Overall, the results of this study indicate a high degree of long term stability in coral community structure in the marginal and heavily disturbed environment of northern Kuwait.

Highlights

Coral communities in Kuwait occur in one of the most environmentally extreme coral habitats in the world
Since the area was first surveyed in the mid-1980s the coral reef at Kubbar has been suggested to be under pressure from a variety of stressor including recurrent bleaching events associated with extreme temperatures, potential impacts from reduced solar insolation during the first Gulf War, long-term damage from recreational boat anchoring and fishing activities, as well as other factors [2, 3, 4, 1, 10, 6]
Coral cover appears to vary between years at each site, analyses showed that this was significant in only one instance; a two-way ANOVA showed a significant interaction between the main effects of year and site (Year*Site F(4,40) = 6.8, p < 0.001)

Summary

Introduction

Coral communities in Kuwait occur in one of the most environmentally extreme coral habitats in the world. Due to its shallow depth, the arid nature of the surrounding environment, and the limited input of freshwater, the waters of the northern Persian Gulf are characterized by high salinity and temperatures ranging from 30°C annually [1]. Despite these harsh conditions, coral reefs occur in both the nearshore and offshore environments of Kuwait, with the offshore coral cays representing some of the best developed true coral reefs in the Arabian Gulf [2, 3]. National surveys conducted in the early 1980s showed Kubbar to be among the most speciose and highest coral covered reefs in Kuwait [1, 4]

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